In general, a steering wheel is a device that is manipulated by a driver so as to change a direction of travel of a vehicle, and typically includes an outer rim, a central hub, and spokes connecting the rim to the hub.
Conventionally, an apparatus for manipulating in-vehicle devices using a steering wheel includes: an electrostatic sensor having a dielectric layer formed on an upper surface of a spoke of a steering wheel and one or more electrodes stacked on edge portions of an upper surface of the dielectric layer; a signal analyzer for analyzing a signal generated by the electrostatic sensor; and a control signal generator for generating a control signal for in-vehicle devices using the analyzed signal. The apparatus may recognize a drag operation applied to the upper surface of the spoke or touch operations repeated at certain times and control in-vehicle devices on the basis of the recognized operations.
In such a conventional apparatus for manipulating in-vehicle devices using a steering wheel, the electrostatic sensor that senses a touch of a driver may be disposed on the upper surface of the spoke of the steering wheel, such that the driver may have difficulty in removing his or her hands from the rim of the steering wheel in order to manipulate devices.
In addition, the conventional apparatus for manipulating in-vehicle devices using a steering wheel may control in-vehicle, or other, devices such as turn signal lights, emergency lights, wipers, audio volume, and the like, but does not provide a graphic interface control function, such as the ability to move a cursor and select an icon on a display screen.